Pesticides in Vermont Pollen

In 2012, the Vermont Agency of Agriculture, Food, and Markets (VAAFM), conducted a preliminary study to investigate whether we could determine levels of pesticides in pollen as delivered to the hive by honey bees. Pollen traps, which scrape pollen off of the bees as they return to the hive, were used in this study to collect pollen for pesticide analysis. This technique makes it possible to determine what pesticides the bees are actually eating, since pollen is the major protein source for bees.